A Tangled Web of Beauty Part 3- More than the Earth
by Starjargon
Summary: River Song surprises the Doctors and his companions with a more dramatic event than someone moving the earth. T for banter. Features Jackie, Donna, 10, 11, 10.2, Mickey, Sarah Jane, Jack, Jack, River, Rose, and cameo by Martha.
1. More than the Earth

**A/N- Continuing in the spirit of pure, unabashed author gratification, here is another part to my Time Baby series. It's not as polished so far as I'd like it to be, but it is key to other parts that I'm excited to put up soon. So, continuing with the AU fluff- here's another moment in the intersecting pieces of Bella Song's life. Set during Journey's End. T for some River/ Doctor innuendos. Please provide feedback, as some of these characters may make more appearances, and it's essential I get them right.**

They had just gotten the earth back into its rightful spot in the sky, when there was a loud knock on the TARDIS door. They heard a distressed woman's voice on the other side of the door.

"Doctor! It's time! Open up and help me!"

Confused, the Doctor was about to run down when Jack went forward instead and opened the door.

"Jack Harkness! This certainly is a surprise. Is my old man in there?"

"Wha-"

"Well, let's just have a look, shall we- ahh!"

"Jack, who- River Song?"

"Hello Sweetie- oh, daft old idiot- how young are you?"

"I'm not- hang on," he said, finally registering her look of pain and her hand placed delicately over her-

"River… is- I mean. Are you pregnant?"

"Not for much longer- get over here!"

The stunned Doctor and his clone ran to her when she screamed once more. Jack held her up as pain contorted her face.

"Hands above the equator at all times Captain," she said when the contraction had passed. Then she took in the other men near her. "Two of you! Well, is it my birthday as well?"

"Doctor- who is this?" asked a very confused Rose, while Martha went into medical mode and ran to her newest patient, taking vital signs and checking her pulse.

"River, why come here? To me?"

"It's not like I had much choice, Sweetie. I kind of got distracted. I was on the moon helping with a last- minute treaty, then the earth moved and with its gravitational center gone, everything went haywire up there. It returned to normal not long ago, so of course I knew I'd find you close by. By then the contractions had started."

"But Doctor, she can't be-"

"Donna! Spoilers."

"Doctor, not to rush you, but this whole room will be getting a very big spoiler very soon if we don't move her out of here- this instant." Jack remembered his daughter's birth and was not sure everyone here was ready for such an up close and personal experience.

"Right- River, med bay- now."

"I'll stay here in case we need to take off again- who knows the state of the earth right now?" reasoned the new Doctor.

River got a death grip on the Doctor's hand as Jack helped lead both of them to the med bay, Martha listing out instructions for what sort of supplies she would need, with which Jack hurried to comply.

"But- but who is she?"

"My future," said the duplicate- pacing furiously and still deciding if he wanted to follow into the med bay or not. "Well, his future. Not quite sure how yet, though apparently we are very much connected."

"Oh give it up, Space Boy. Never took you for an idiot."

"But HOW is this possible?! Even if she was- even if we- It's not possible! Humans and Time Lords simply aren't compatible like that."

"Well, apparently that's rubbish theory, isn't it?"

"Donna, you're not being very helpful."

"Sorry. Just a bit of a shock- that's all. She's dead. I mean she will be dead. I mean she was dead. And now she's here. Having a baby! Oh! That means- this baby… Oh my- Doctor!"

This Doctor had begun to pace even more rapidly now. "Yes, Donna. Exactly. IF, and I mean IF…that child is- either way, he or she will lose their mother."

"Can someone please explain what's goin' on to those of us not all Alien-y? Who was that woman- and how can she be in your future if she's dead?" Jackie was fed up with all the confusing conversation around her.

Donna was the one to answer. "We met that woman, River Song, in a library-"

"THE Library. That's the name of the planet."

"Alright- _the_ Library. Only, she already knew the Doctor. Very well. But then, things went wrong. She-"

"Handcuffed me to a pole and died in my place. His place. Oh, this is going to get confusing, isn't it? Anyway- she wouldn't tell me- him- us, who she was. But she knew something no one else in the universe does. But how?"

"I'd say the answer's pretty clear, Boss," joked Mickey.

"What'd she know?" asked Rose, trying to keep up with him, still trying to process the new events of the day.

He just gazed up at her, silent, before resuming his pace.

"I was able to transfer her consciousness onto the data banks though. Our lives are going to be out of order. She had to keep track of everything in a diary."

"Oh, Boss- you do like to keep them guessing don't you?" He glared at Mickey.

Sarah Jane broke the moment "So, Doctor- is it possible that this woman _is-_"

Just then the door burst open, and everyone jumped, as in walked- Jack, and behind him he was dragging a young man with a tweed jacket and a bowtie.

"Now why would you bring us her-e. Jaaack. Oh my," said the man- looking at the people around him in utter astonishment. Everyone else froze, confused as well as Jack pushed the man into the room, in a kind if not forceful manner. The man glanced at the faces around him, turned quickly to take a step back toward the door, then turned back around as Jack stepped in front of it, eyes glaring at him pointedly.

"Donna!" exclaimed the bow-tied man, clapping his hands and raising his arms as he ran to her and engulfed her in a hug.

"And my Sarah Jane- how's Luke? Silly question- of course he's fine. Wow! Look at you, lovely as ever." He threw his arms around her as well. Donna and Jackie were just about to shout at the stranger when he turned on his heel and started toward-

"Rickey! How's things, mate? And Jackie! Look at you- just the same as you always are. And me! Wow, we were pretty then, wasn't I?" He turned his head and took in the duplicate Doctor with interest.

He turned slowly at last to the woman who was standing still in shock. He took a deep breath and let out a gentle smile. "Hello, Rose Tyler."

"Doctor?" She finally exhaled the air she hadn't realized she'd been keeping.

"Right, new face. Well, it's been so nice catching up with everyone, but you know how it goes- can't stay in this Old Girl for long- not like this anyway." He made to escape once more out the door, but Jack stayed firmly in front of it.

"Jack-"

"Doctor- no. It's time you faced this. No more running away."

"I'm a Time Lord, I can run away all I want."

"Look, I promised Rory and Amy I'd make sure you were here, and you are. And you aren't leaving until they do."

"But Jack- we could cause a massive paradox!"

"No buts, Doc. I promise, it'll be worth it."


	2. Dangerous Kind of Faith

As Jack explained to everyone that _this_ Doctor had fathered River's child and was trying to run from his new family, the Doctor was playing with the familiar controls of not- so- long ago, pretending to be oblivious to the stares of his companions.

"But how is this even possible? Humans and Time Lords can't-"

The Doctor cut off his human counterpart. "She's human plus. She's got enough Time Lord in her to regenerate and to live as long as a Time Lord is able. It also obviously affected her ability to conceive a Time Lord child." He went back to fiddling with the controls, silent and moping, trying to decide whether or not he wanted to make another escape attempt.

When Jack was finished with his explanation, the Doctor felt a hard smack on the back of his head. He turned around, expecting Jackie, or even Donna, and was surprised to find Rose was the one with her arms crossed, face set as stubbornly as ever.

"What?" he tried innocently.

"You're just gonna abandon your baby? Just give up on 'er like that? She isn't even born yet an' you're leavin' 'er! Or 'im!" The Doctor's counterpart put his hands on her shoulders, pulling back the once- fatherless girl before him, his gaze piercing as he stared down compassionately at her.

"Rose, I-"

"That's really rotten, Boss. Never really thought of you as a coward," imput Mickey disappointedly.

"Oi!"

"Doctor, would it really be so bad?" asked Sarah Jane, pulling his attention to her.

"Well, it's just-"

"You should be the one in there with 'er! She needs you righ' now, not Mr. Flirtypants (Jack scoffed indignantly at this) and a practical stranger. Do you 'ave any idea wha' it's like to 'ave a child on your own? No, you don't- an' don't give me none of that 'Time Lord' nonsense. What 'as that woman ever done to you for you to treat 'er like this?"

"He's not a stranger- _he is me._ My wife's never really been particular about which one of us she gets, so-"

"Your wife?!"

"Yes, Jackie- she is having my daughter after all. What kind of man do you take me for?"

She looked at him suspiciously, hands on her hips.

"And just how long have you been married to this woman who's currently bearing your child- without you?"

He at least had the sense to look sheepish at all the accusatory looks pointed at him. He gulped.

"Well, you know- time travel. We never really meet in the right order. So, I suppose, from her point of view, well, since our first wedding, if you could call it that, I mean, that first time I married her…three…or four…centuries."

This caused a full uproar, his old companions all angry at him and shouting accusations and reprimands at the chastised Time Lord.

"'ow COULD you just leave her alone at a time like this? She's your _wife_ and deserves all your attention and support while 'aving your child."

"Four hundred years and you're still trying to run away- it's a little late for that, isn't it?"

"Just like you, leave when the going gets tough- but I always thought you came back, Mate."

"Always willing to head fast and strong into the situation, no thought about the consequences."

"You've certainly changed since you were 'im, 'aven't ya? Leavin' your family when they need you the most."

He was surprised when his duplicate came up next to him, quietly helping him set the controls. Of all the voices in the room besides his, only one had been strangely silent.

"Donna?"

She looked at him with understanding, tilting her head as she took him in.

"What are you so afraid of, Doctor? You love children. I know it terrifies you with what's going to happen with River, and I know Jenny left you scarred, but this is a new life. One who will need you when her mother… Why are you so determined to run?"

He looked at her, and then up at his counterpart, who took him in with full understanding on his face. The human man nodded at him, ever so slightly, encouraging him to reveal his secrets.

"What if I destroy her life like I destroyed all of yours?" the Doctor asked quietly. "I can't mess this up. I can't disappoint her. And there's every chance I might."

"There's every chance you might not," returned Donna.

Rose came up to him, now putting her hand on his shoulder gently as she turned him to face her.

"Do you really think I'd rip a hole in dimensions to get back to someone who had destroyed my life? Before you, I 'ad no life. And everythin' we went through- everythin'- I wouldn't change it for anythin' else, and you shouldn't be ashamed of that."

"Doctor," Sarah Jane came up and hugged him. "We all would do anything for you. Anything. And it has nothing to do with the adventure or the lifestyle- it has to do with _you_. You make people better. Bad things happen to everyone- but sometimes those bad things are worth it. And the fact you're willing to run away from this means it's too important to you to mess it up. You won't destroy your child's life. Only by _not_ being there do you have any chance of that."

He looked at the faces around him, all looking at him with love and support. He couldn't take it. He gulped and rubbed his hands together.

"She deserves so much better. Both of them. All of you."

"Do you really think we're too weak to not know our own minds, Doc? We _chose_ you. The same way you chose us. The same way _River_ _chose_ you- again and again. And," Jack cut the Doctor off before he could protest, "she will always choose you, like any of us would if we could go back."

"And, no matter who they are or what they're capable of, no one is ever better for a baby than her own daddy. She deserves _you_ because you love them enough to be scared. You love 'er enough to run away to protect 'er. You won't- you can't destroy 'er. We won't let ya." Rose stuck out her tongue slightly as she smiled a promise up at him.

The Doctor looked around at all the friends surrounding him, all so full of faith that he could do this. It almost gave him the full confidence he needed. He remembered being a father. Loved it. Loved being a grandfather and even now, a friend and a husband. But the shadows of those lost still plagued the back of his mind. Suddenly, he saw a flash like lightning in the corner of the room.

"I promise, Uncle Jack, Daddy can fix anything. Now, come on- I was able to lock onto the TARDIS, then Dad will know what to do." When the smoke cleared, a beautiful young woman with bright red curly hair and deep green eyes looked around her, even as she held up a coughing Jack, who was clutching his stomach in pain.

"Daddy!" She ran forward for the Doctor, before taking in the sight of the console and the full room of people. "Oops." She looked down at Jack's wrist. "Must've gotten the wrong coordinates." She dropped his wrist before picking him up and half dragging the groaning man to the Doctor. "Nothing to be done about it now. Daddy, Uncle Jack fell into a sea of Urxs."

"I didn't fall, I was-"

"Anyway, he swallowed quite a bit before I was able to fish him out. But the vortex manipulator shorted and now he's got an awful pain in his stomach. So I brought him here so you can fix it."

The Doctor looked on at the scene in surprised amusement, and walked forward even as his clone put out a hand to hold the healthy Jack back from himself.

The Doctor and Rose knelt by the groaning man on the floor, the Doctor sonicking him and reading the results.

"Malsentia urxasis. His stomach has stopped functioning with the fluid in it. Not a problem, just need to jumpstart his system, and then his body can reboot and expel the damaging liquids."

"Expel how?"

"How does the human body normally expel things, Mickey? Sorry, Captain. You're in for a very rough night." The Doctor held his mouth open as he poured a yellow gooey like substance down Jack's throat.

Jack sputtered and coughed, pieces of no one wanted to know what coming out of his mouth before he wiped it and looked up at his younger self.

"And how are you doing?" He smiled up at himself, as flirtatiously as his heaving body would allow.

"I'm impressed. We even manage to make excruciating pain look attractive."

"Trust me, you don't," Rose teased.

The Doctor had his screwdriver out as he fiddled with the contraption around the man's wrist.

"And you didn't think to check which TARDIS you'd honed in on?" he lightly scolded the woman holding Jack up.

She shrugged. "Figured it didn't matter. You always fix things, doesn't matter which you I get."

He smiled at that, laughing lightly. "You, Bella Song, are so like your mother."

"Funny. When I show up with a damaged manipulator in a time different from where I'd intended, she always says I'm just like my father. When are we, anyway?"

"You're…about. To. Be. Born," grunted older, injured Jack through gritted teeth.

Bella's eyes went wide. "Oooh. Better leave then. Mom'd kill me if we caused yet another paradox."

"Don't think you're going to get off easily, just because you're not born yet," the Doctor warned.

"What do you mean, Daddy?" she asked in a voice far too sweet.

"How _exactly_ did Jack manage to fall into that sea of Urxs?" the Doctor's duplicate raised his eyebrows pointedly as the question left his mouth.

"Well, time's up- we'd really better be going now- you know, timelines and spoilers and what not." She got a firm grip on Jack who shuddered even as he pulled Rose in for a quick kiss before winking meaningfully at his past self. Bella leaned in and wrapped one arm around the Doctor's neck, kissing his cheek before pushing at the button on Jack's wrist. "Good luck, Daddy! You'll be great!" And in a puff of smoke, the two of them were gone.


End file.
